As one of the world’s most widely known and influential guitar brands, Fender Guitars have made their mark on music history. While Fender makes acoustic guitars, bass guitars and amplifiers, they are best known for the distinct looking and sounding electric guitars that have been made famous by the likes of Hendrix, Clapton, Vaughn and many more.

Leo Fender began making electric guitars in the 1940’s and was ready to begin production on the Broadcaster, now known as the Telecaster (seen above), in 1951. The first guitar to use a modular design that made it suitable for mass production, the Broadcaster / Telecaster was wildly popular and valuated the Fender Guitar Company to become a house hold name amoung guitar players. Leveraging the success of the Telecaster, by 1970, the Fender brand had grown to include several lines of solid-body electric guitars, including the super-popular Stratocaster.

One of the most enticing aspects of Fender guitars is their ability to be modified. Every guitar player is unique in his or her playing style and form; Fender electric guitars can be modified easily to suit the comfort of the individual player. While artists like Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, The Beatles and Stevie Ray Vaughan are known for playing Fender guitars, no one is known better for modifying a Fender than Eric Clapton. His signature American Fender Stratocaster, ‘Blackie’, is a Frankenstein’s monster made from the parts and pieces of three separate guitars.

The Fender brand  has long maintained a high standard for of quality, but, as they have focused more on mass production in recent years, they offer a wide variety of  instruments at various price points. While the outsourced lines sacrifice quality and tone for price savings, the American made Fender still remains one of the top choices for elite guitar players around the world. With a growing list of legendary guitar players sporting Fender electric guitars in their racks, it’s clear that the brand produces a high quality instrument that produces a rich tone, with minimal screech.

The Fender company also owns a large and growing list of other guitar brands such as Squier, Gretsch, Jackson Guitars, Charvel, Hamer, Tacoma, Guild Guitar Company, SWR Sound Corporation, Sunn, Brand X, Orpheum, Olympia, Heartfield, Starcaster.

While Fender guitars are always a great choice, it’s always important to conduct your own research to determine what guitar is the right one for you.

Keep Rockin’!!!

Photo of Fender Strat taken by Groovysuvi on December 26, 2009
Photo of Fender 52′ Telecaster Taken by PixelPlacebo on July 30, 2008
Photo of Eric Clapton playing Blackie from Flicker- Taken by Ultomatt on May 23,2008